Former Ohio Secretary of State Speaks at Law School, Returns to Teach

April 06, 2009

In an announcement made only weeks after his convocation appearance, Liberty University School of Law revealed that the Honorable J. Kenneth Blackwell, former Ohio Secretary of State, will return to co-teach a new course in public policy this summer.

The Public Policy Lawyering Skills course, which will be introduced as a two-week intensive, will incorporate practical skills with the various activities involved in the public policy arena.

Mr. Blackwell will bring a wealth of experience in public policy to the course. Some of his accomplishments and positions include: the youngest Mayor of Cincinnati, Undersecretary at the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations Human Rights Commission, the first African-American elected to statewide office in Ohio as State Treasurer, and recipient of the John M. Ashbrook Award for steadfast conservative leadership. He also is a Senior Fellow for Family Empowerment at the Family Research Council and a Ronald Reagan Distinguished Fellow for Public Policy at the Buckeye Institute.

Mr. Blackwell first visited the School of Law as a speaker for the school’s February convocation service. It was there that he shared his thoughts with law students, faculty, and staff about America as a beacon of light and a nation capable of perfection. “Whether we [the American people] get better, stay stagnant, or our condition worsens depends on the hearts, minds, and souls of those men and women who make up our democracy,” he said.

Mr. Blackwell urged attendees to stay focused on God as their Creator and to realize that they are a light unto the world. “As lawyers, I urge you not to spend your energy and efforts to curse the darkness, but rather use them to be a candle,” he said, adding that “together we can punch holes in the darkness” and can “move America in the right direction.”

Once a month each semester, Liberty University School of Law hosts a variety of speakers and activists to address law faculty, staff, and students on the issues related to law and the Christian walk.

The next School of Law Convocation is scheduled for Wednesday, April 15, and will feature longtime political activist Morton Blackwell, president of the Leadership Institute.